


The Painter's Daughter

by Tired_College_Student_Writing



Category: Creepypasta - Fandom, Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe- Different Father, Bad Parent Gabriel Agreste, Badass Helen Otis, Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Creepypasta, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Mouse Juleka Couffaine, Murderers, Running Away, Sexual Harassment, Snake Luka Couffaine | Viperion, Whump, what if
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:54:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,304
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23107300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tired_College_Student_Writing/pseuds/Tired_College_Student_Writing
Summary: Marinette is the daughter of two bakersMarinette is a happy some times naive girlMarinette is loved to create and make more then they liked to destroyThese were the fact everyone knew, could guess easily from knowing her for a short period, but there is much more below the surface of the girlMarinette knew violence in depth before she ever heard of a miraculousMarinette always knew how to strike down her opponents quickly and effectively, whether it was with words or in self-defenseMarinette has held magic before the miraculous was given to her, much darker and twisted magic, the Magic of the Proxies.
Relationships: Helen Otis | The Bloody Painter & Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Sabine Cheng & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Sabine Cheng/ Helen Otis | The Bloody Painter, Sabine Cheng/Tom Dupain
Comments: 15
Kudos: 219





	1. Chapter 1

There was a knock on his hotel door. 

Helen glanced at it with concern, quickly placing the brush he was holding, along with the… paint he had been using into the side table, keeping his knife tucked in his sleeve just in case it wasn’t just the maid wanting in. 

Slowly he crept forward as another knock sounded out, forcing him to move. 

With a steady hand, he opened the wooden door, leveling a glare at the person behind it only to freeze. 

There stood a small Asian woman, fierce fire burning in her grey eyes. Eyes he remembered from over three years ago.

“Sabine?”

She offered a brief smile before her face fell, “May I come in Helen?”

Wearily he stepped to the side. 

Rules of the Proxies were few, and most boiled down to don’t get caught and don’t harm each other. They were allowed to drink or eat whatever they please, allowed to go to movies or musicals or bowling, allowed to sneak into concerts or clubs, allowed to mess around with whatever gender they wanted to. 

Sabine had been one of those one night stands he had let himself have. 

“Planning on stabbing me now that I found you again?” 

He jolted staring at her with wide eyes, “What?!” 

She smiled softly, “I saw the painting last time, Helen. I originally thought they were just monochrome experiments, reds and browns and how they mixed. I didn’t say anything but when the news ran the story, showing the bodies and the painting… it wasn’t hard to put together.” 

Helen frowned, eyes going blank, “Why are you here Sabine?” 

“I needed to talk to you,” was the short answer, but she didn’t even blink when he raised his blade towards her face. 

“Told the cops then?” He asked, letting the knife brush against her collarbone, “Here to get me to turn myself in?” 

“No,” She answered shortly, “But I do need to show you something.” 

“If you’re planning to kill me, I have to warn you I’m not exactly human,” 

She snorted, “No, really? I’ve seen the footage, you’re too strong, too fast, too durable to be human. No, I’m not here to kill you, Helen. Can I show it to you without getting my throat slit?” 

He considered her for a second, but that fierce determination did not fade, didn’t even flicker when held against his icy stare. Finally, he relented taking a step back causing her to smile softly as if he hadn’t just had a blade to her neck.

“Thank you,” She whispered, reaching into her purse, “I’m a mother now, to a beautiful baby girl, I named her  Huì Xuè (绘 血).” 

“Why tell me this?” He questioned cocking his head to the side, “What do you want to tell me?” 

“She’s turning three in July,” She said, holding out a picture, “We met at the end of September.” 

He looked and saw a little girl beaming up at him, black hair pulled into twin braids, bright blue eyes twinkling at him from a freckled face. Very familiar looking blue eyes. 

“What?!” He yelped reeling back, mind spiraling. The end of September to the beginning of July, that was just around 9 months right? But… he couldn’t be a father… right? 

“Don’t even ask,” Sabine cut him off, “You were the only person I was within eight months before and after I got pregnant, and there’s one more thing you should see.” 

“Don’t think I can get much more shocked,” He mumbled, knife dropping to the floor. 

“The painting wasn’t the only thing that told me you were the Bloody Painter,” She said flipping to the next picture, “This was a bit of a giveaway too.” 

  
  


It was the mark, the mark that was burned into all of the proxies, his on his left ribs, The Operator symbol.

His daughter bore the mark, right on her hip. Only instead of a pitch-black or angry red symbol like the proxies were it was a deep burgundy, a port stain birthmark. The lines were a little less defined, more blotchy but the shape was unmistakable. 

  
  


“How… She’s already his…” 

“That’s what I was worried about,” She sighed, “Does this mean my daughter is going to be a proxy? A killer?”

  
  


Helen was silent, staring at the pictures. 

Because he didn’t know, he didn’t think this had ever happened before, a proxy having a child with a human. Was his daughter predestined to be a killer just like him? To serve an eldritch being for all of eternity or whenever she managed to bargain for her death. 

“I don’t know,” He admitted slowly, “I don’t know what it means for  Huì xuè , or you as her mother, but I’ll find out.” 

“Thank you,” She said once more, “I know this isn’t how you expected today to go, but I had to know, and you deserved to know you had a child out there too.” 

“May I meet her?” He asked, only to feel ice gnaw at his heart as she shook her head. 

“No,” She told him plainly, “Not yet at least, you’re still a killer and I don’t understand what sets you off and I’m not risking our daughter like that.” 

“I’m not…” He screwed up his face, “I’m not insane and senseless when it comes to killing like some of my… coworkers. I’m logical about it, looking at the facts on if they deserve it or not. Rapists, murderers, thieves, blackmailers, bullies that relentlessly torture their victims for years, abusers, people that are considered the low of the low. Unless I’m given a job to dispose of someone that doesn’t fit in those categories I’m not going to be killing them.” 

“And if your… employer,” She used his same wording, but not giving an inch, “decides that  Sǐle huì is a liability that he wants disposed of? Will you kill her?” 

He stiffened, hand falling to his ribs where he could almost feel the operator mark burned into his skin, a claim of loyalty.    
  


“He’d send someone else,” He whispered, “He wouldn’t send me… because I wouldn’t be able to do it.” 

“Then I’m not going to make it easy for him,” Sabine countered, “Once I know my daughter is safe, then you may meet her until then contact me through this. You won’t know where I nor our daughter is until then.” 

He took the scrap of paper, a nonsensical email address staring back at him, “Okay. I’ll find out as soon as my current job is done.” 

She offered a smile before hesitating, “Can I see your latest painting?” 

He raised a brow and she huffed, “Yes yes, bloody painter and all of that. May I see it?”

“It’s not quite done,” He mumbled, but walked over to the covered easel and pulled off the sheet. 

Half-finished lay his work, a street scene of an open-air market, the reds and browns swirling as the blood dried, one of his more intricate pieces, as he painstakingly painted out individual goods and wears on each of the 13 stalls. All he had left to do was to add in the people in the blank spaces he had left and his signature smiley face in the corner. 

He looked back to a blank-faced Sabine, set shoulders and jaw, eyes gazing at it intently. 

“You’re uncomfortable.” 

It wasn’t a question but she answers it all the same, “Yes, but my daughter may very well be like you one day. I refuse to be scared of her or the works she makes if she follows in your footsteps, so while it is disturbing, knowing you took a life to make it, the craftsmanship and skill are undeniable. It is beautiful and that’s what I decide to see it as.” 


	2. Chapter 2

Two days later, Helen is packed up and on the run again, the authorities had found his masterpiece the night prior and were on the hunt, but instead of just leaving town he scratched the symbol branded on his ribs onto the largest pine he could find in the Russian forest, ignoring the blazing pain that seared through him as the portal opened up to Slenderman’s forest. 

It wasn’t often he went back, usually receiving his missions from Slender by the being visiting him directly or through their link, but the pictures tucked carefully into his sketchbook were his new mission. 

The forest would be foreboding and spine chilling to any human unfortunate enough to find themselves within its trees, but to proxies it was like a breath of fresh air, comforting rejuvenating as their glamors would weaken and show off the monsters truly within. He paused as he felt his form shift, from the tall lean build of a 25-year-old he was mentally and how he presented himself to the world, back to the scrawny high school freshman he had been frozen as the moment the sigil burned into his skin. Usually, when he came back he would stroll idly towards his destination, enjoying the feeling before he left once more. 

Now he took off at a sprint, dodging through the trees and underbrush with single-minded intent. He could feel other proxies and creeps nearby, Masky, Hoodie, Jeff, Smile, the Rake, EJ, and BEN, but he paid them no mind as he reached the decrepit mansion that stood in the heart of the forest, an illusion, of course, to keep any wayward humans away long enough for Slenderman to redirect them back to his twisted game. Inside the mansion was spotless as a creepy house could be, intricately decorated with a variety of styles from throughout the ages. 

  
  


Helen made a beeline for the Office on the third floor, barely waiting for the answering static from his knock before entering. 

“We need to talk,” He told the faceless being. 

_Did something happen on your mission?_

The voice cut through his head like a hot knife but he was used to it, simply pulling out the pictures, “Kinda, apparently even Proxies can have children, did you know that?” 

Shocked static spiked through the room, as the being without eyes inspected the pictures. 

_She’s marked._

“Yeah and her mother is concerned about what that means, so let’s talk,” Helen responded shortly, taking a seat across the desk. 

* * *

He stayed at Slender’s mansion for the longest period he had since he had become a proxy. With the help of Slender he set up a computer that BEN could not access, and the Painter avoided the other creeps like the plague, only speaking to Slender as they worked out what they could for Huì Xuè and staying in close contact with Sabine.

Helen had been emailing Sabine as the facts were worked out and Slender made his decisions. She told him more and more about Huì Xuè with each passing day, and more pictures came too. She was always smiling, laughter bubbling from her lips, she knew her letters and was already reading basic books. She was artistic, taking after her father it seemed, though her medium and form of choice were fabric and fashion instead of blood and painting. She made herself a hat, a simple felt thing that she had drawn out and had Sabine hot glue together, a silly green thing with flowers and sequence scattered across it in an almost whimsical way. He always found himself clicking back to the picture when he was waiting alone in his room, waiting to speak to Slender so he could update Sabine. 

From what Slender could tell, she was under his domain but was not a proxy unless she committed murder. Proxies were made through violence and pain not born, but not every murderer became a proxy they had to be influenced. Huì Xuè could skip that step with her father being part of the domain when she was conceived. She wouldn’t feel a stronger compulsion then anyone else to end a life, however. 

As she bore his mark, the same rules of the proxies applied to her, she was safe from every proxy and creepy in existence, and the eldritch being decided to extend the safety net to the girl’s mother and other immediate as well for the safety of Huì Xuè, along with the fact that Helen would most likely gut anyone that touched them. 

One night, after all the facts had mostly been sorted and all that was left was to inform the creeps of the new development, he didn’t receive his usual picture of Huì Xuè, instead, all that was in the email was a skype name. 

Helen couldn’t pull up the website fast enough. 

The camera connected to Sabine’s hopeful eyes, the background nothing more then a white sheet tacked up to block out any identifying marks of the area. 

“Is it true?” She asked, “Our daughter is safe?”

“Yes,” Helen breathed, “So are you and if you decide to bring a step-parent into the mix, they’ll be safe as well.” 

  
She blinked in surprise, “Step-parent?” 

He just snorted, “Sabine, I know what was between us was just a one night stand, that there’s no feeling between us. Slenderman has ruled that as long as you and whatever partner you take will be safe as long as you treat Huì Xuè with love and care, bringing her up the best you can and keep her safe from all the mundane threats that normal humans face.”

She smiled sheepishly, “I did meet a nice man recently… we’ve gone out a few times,” 

Helen smiled, “I’m glad Sabine. You deserve some good after the stress of having a proxy’s child no doubt brought.” 

“So she’s officially safe and in no danger of becoming a proxy.” 

“Yes,” He agreed, “Unless she was to murder someone in a truly twisted way that would make a good proxy story, Huì Xuè will remain as human for the rest of her life. The mark will not make her anymore prone to death or murder as anyone else.” 

  
  


“Marinette,” Sabine said, making his eyes blow wide. 

“What?” 

“Marinette Huì Xuè Cheng,” Sabine told him, “Our daughter’s name is Marinette Huì Xuè Cheng. She was born at 11:03 am on July 9, 2003. Her middle name directly translates to painted blood, but most would say it means art is in her blood. She was born and I am raising in Paris France, and I think it’s about time you meet her.” 

He could barely think straight as the info spun around his head. Marinette. His little Marinette. 

“Can I see her now? What time is it in Paris right now?” 

“It’s almost 1 am,” She informed him, “I don’t think I should get her up this late, but if you call in a few hours…” 

“Okay, yes, please.”

“Okay.”

They hung up a short time later, nothing left to be said. 

Helen rose to his feet and set off to the kitchen. It was about time for dinner. And while there was no formal event and more of a free for all, it would be the highest concentrations of Creeps in the mansion. 

It was time to face the music, and inform all of the creeps he could what would happen if they hurt his baby girl. 

His little Marinette. 


	3. Chapter 3

Marinette grew and grew.

At age 5 her mother married the baker across the street and all of them ended up hyphenating their names to Dupain-Cheng, Tom became her Papa after her Dad reassured her it was alright on one of his visits as he brought her fabric flowers and a lovely set of paintbrushes. He was always bringing her gifts, mostly art supplies but sometimes sketches he’s made and even one of his paintings, given on Her first birthday after Helen met her. When people came over they always commented on the odd brown painting in her room, how it didn’t seem to match the rest of the decor, a sprawling landscape with a single woman resting up a tree, hair blowing in the wind Marinette just shrugged and said it was a present from her dad, one Mama hadn’t been too pleased about. 

At age 7 she met her rival, Chloe Bourgeois, and ranted and raved about her to her Mama, Papa, and Dad. Her mother looked worried every time she ranted for a while before she overheard her Dad offering to turn Chloe into paint only for Mari to scrunch her nose and tell him that she didn’t want to be the reason someone died. She knew what her Dad was, knew what he did, and she still loved him but she would not allow him to work in her name. 

At age 10 she had mastered sewing and began making her own clothes. It took a few times to get right, but she had a lot of practice patching things up since her Dad often had cuts and rips in his clothes and she hated to see him look anything less than his best. Whoever heard of a ragamuffin serial killer after all. Soon she was making her the majority of her own clothes from the fabrics her Dad and parents bought her, and she made them cl too. The creeps often commented on The Painter’s new outfit, an updated version of his old one and asked if they could have some too. By age 12 Marinette had endeared over two dozen creeps to her by eagerly making them more durable clothes for them to wear on hunts and willingly patching them up if they promised not to hunt in Paris outside of missions they were required to do. 

  
  


At 13, Marinette was given the Ladybug Miraculous, becoming a heroine. Her Dad had laughed hysterically at this when he visited after she first transformed, feeling the ancient magic swirling through her, claiming her as much as Slender’s magic did. They had always been worried about her becoming a creep or proxy, unfeelingly ending lives like her father and here she was, with the magic to heal and bring life back. The power of creation from a being just as old as Slenderman and Zalgo.A true holder of the Ladybug earrings, born to control the magic of creation Tikki had greeted the creep with a warm smile and fierce eyes, telling him that her bug was safe, safer then she ever was before even if she was flipping over rooftops and fighting magical foes. 

At 14, a new rival appears right as Chloe is starting to try harder, this one is named Lila. Helen’s blood boils as he listens to his daughter’s tales, knowing this girl would be the exact he would string up by her ankles and bleed like a pig for his next piece if only he promised years ago to leave anyone in Paris alone. He still offered though, and this time her refusals were hesitant and unsure, as the words got harsher and harsher as the lies spun became more intricate. 

At 15, the class showed their true colors and the once-bustling friend group broke apart into two camps, Team Lila, with Alya, Myrlene, Sabrina, Rose, Max and Ivan, and Team Marinette, with Nino, Juleka, Nathanial, Kim, Alix, and Chloe. Adrian was strictly neutral, refusing to take either side, fearful of his father finding out about the mini-war and removing him from school. Her Dad wanted to remove him himself but Marinette told him no. The boy was sheltered beyond belief and had to be convinced that the lair’s constant unwanted touching was sexual harassment clear and simple. He meant no harm with his ill-suited advice and ideals of the high road. 

Now at 16, she was faced with an even bigger issue. 

Her Dad had arrived unannounced as always, never knowing when he’d freely be able to come visit without the police trailing him. They ate dinner, all four of them talking as they always did, avoiding talking about Helen’s job, instead asking about new stories of creeps’ blunders. After dinner, the married couple had shooed her and her dad upstairs so they could clean up. 

“I want to kill someone,” She told her dad, slowly once the door to her room was shut, from where she sat on her chaise, sketchbook balanced on her knees as she sketched without looing at it. She couldn’t tell anyone else her thoughts, mama and papa would both panic, others would think she was insane… 

"Let me do it," He offered as easily as if he was offering to drive her to her friend's house as he sat down next to her, “I’m sure they would make a lovely painting for you to hang on the wall. Just tell me who. Or if not a painting I’m sure Jeff would put them to sleep, or EJ could make a meal out of them, or-”

“You don’t get it,” She hissed, eyes hard as she stared forward with an unblinking stare, pencil dancing, “I don’t want them dead. I don’t want you or any of the others to handle the situation. I WANT to kill them, by my hand no one else’s, I can picture it.” 

He stared at her for a long second, face blank, but she could see his form flickering. Her dad mentally was over 40 at this point and appeared it most of the time too, but Slenderman always kept the proxies the age they were when he created them. She rarely saw her father looking her age, the age he was frozen at forever. 

It only came out when he was killing, or when he was in emotional turmoil and unable to keep hold of the magic-making him appear older. 

He didn’t know what to say to her announcement, didn’t know what would come of it, what advice he should offer. 

They both knew the rules. If she killed someone, truly intentionally killed someone, she was Slender’s. She had met the being back when she was 10, greeting the horror with a smile and gifted him a new tie, faded charcoal with red skulls seeming to be ingrained within the fabric, from a distance or through Slender’s fog it simply looked red but the effort… She had apologized that she only made him a tie, but wasn’t sure if she could create a suit to match his dimensions as Helen had told her about his tendency to change his height and the tentacles that would appear from his back on occasion. To say that Slender was gone for the girl was stretching it, but he was pleased with her and her attitude towards the darkness that was her dad’s world.

It didn’t mean that anyone wanted her to become part of his domain permanently. 

“Tell about them,” Helen finally settled on, “Why do you want to kill them.”

“Gabriel Agreste, and Lila Rossi,” She whispered, eyes faraway. He heard their names before, the absentee, borderline abusive father of his daughter’s crush and the liar that nearly broke his ray of sunshine. Two people ripe for the picking if only Marinette hadn’t ruled Paris off-limits to all creep hunting that wasn’t mandated by Slenderman.

But she told them that they didn’t deserve to be killed. 

“What changed?” 

He couldn’t quite keep the snarl out of his voice, but Marinette didn’t comment instead of continuing to stare at the wall. 

“Gabriel hired Lila to keep an eye on Adrian, back when she first came back. They struck up a deal where she reports back to him about what Adrian and his friends won’t and in exchange, she can model with Adrian all she wants and gain the benefits of being a Gabriel Model, along with having open access to Adrian. This was after she broke into their house and posted a picture of her kissing Adrian’s cheek without his permission. He knew what kind of person she was and still, he struck up a deal and refused to let Adrian tell him about any problems he had with Lila. He shut Adrian down every time he tried to tell him about the sexual harassment, about isolating him from the rest of the class.” 

She paused pain flickering in her blank depths, “Then last week Chat Noir showed up on my balcony in tears, shaking so bad I was surprised he didn’t fall off any of the roofs on his way over. He told me he really needed a friend he could trust, someone he could be truthful with and transformed in front of me, begging me not to turn him away, not to call my parents. Adrian basically curled up on my bed at that point and wouldn’t stop sobbing. He told me how Lila had slipped him something, how he couldn’t move as she took off his clothes and…” 

She paused as the mechanical pencil shattered under her grip, plastic scattering across the room, anger flashed across her face for a second before 

“He begged me not to tell anyone because he didn’t think anyone would believe him. His dad wouldn’t even let him talk about the sexual harassment to him, he didn’t want to be shut down trying to explain. He’s been running around as Chat Noir for since then, only stopping here to shower and get food. Plagg is furious and wants to kill them too, but refuses to leave Adrian for even a few minutes. He’s… he’s so very broken, Dad. His eyes are more hollow than some of the proxies. I’m surprised he hasn’t been akumatized yet.” 

“You won’t let me kill them?” He asked again, hands trembling as his image flicked down to 14 and refused to rise again. 

“No, because I don’t just want them dead,” She laughed hollowly, “I’ve been drawing these for the last three days.” 

She flipped around the sketchbook to show the two new outfits she had drawn. On the left was a bleached white leather suit, flawlessly put together with bulky buttons just as white as the suit. On the right was a leather dress, dyed deep red with a ribbed corset. He didn’t understand what was wrong with the designs until he looked closer and saw faces on the back of each outfit, the suit had a face with its eyes and ears sewn shut with venomous green thread, while the face on the dress was split in two, one half scowling with a black eye, with a horn stabbed through the temple, the other a smiling happily as a green eye. Each material was listed as she usually did, but instead of the usual fabrics, all it said over and over again was hair, skin, bone. 

“A death worthy of a proxy,” He commented slowly, not sure what else to say.

Silence overtook them. Both knowing what lay ahead, but being scared of what could come up. 

A knock at the balcony door made both of them jump, Helen’s glamor instinctively rising up. 

“Chat,” She called, a blond head poking through the trapdoor only for him to freeze when he saw Helen. 

“Easy Kitty,” Marinette whispered, “This is my Dad, remember I told you how he stops by every once in a while when his work allows it. He’s safe, I promise.”

“Safe for you guys,” He mumbled, “the rest of this city outside of this house? Not so sure anymore.” 

Chat gave him a weary look but slowly moved down the steps, “What does that mean?” 

Helen looked at the boy, passed the mask and the blank expression and really looked. Marinette was right, he looked broken, broken as a new proxy, one that was still scrambling to understand they had reached their breaking point, to realize what they had done now that the bloodlust and sickness had faded. He looked like Helen had back when he first killed Tom.

Well, that wouldn’t do. 

“You’re going to detransform,” He told him, “Get a shower and eat. Then we’ll talk.” 

He turned on his heel and marched down the steps to the kitchen where he found Sabine and Tom relaxing.

The pair jumped at his sudden appearance especially since he had shifted back to 14 as so as he closed Marinette’s door. 

“What’s wrong?” Tom asked, “Business?” 

Helen frowned, then sighed, “Maybe, but… it’s complicated. Chat Noir is here though and he needs food, I don’t think he’s eaten at all today.” 

Sabine’s eyebrows furrow, “Is that why Marinette’s been sneaking food? She could have said something, of course, we’d feed her partner.” 

Helen snorted at that as he helped the woman go through the leftovers and make up a heaping plate, along with some leftover pastries from the bakery, “I’m fairly certain that she doesn’t know you two know about her being Paris’ saving grace, plus she promised him that she wouldn’t tell anyone he was here. Something bad happened to him, in his civilian life.” 

“How bad?” 

“I’ve seen proxies and creeps form from less,” He admitted, “He’s in danger of snapping.” 

He disappeared upstairs with the food before they could respond. 

There floating in front of Marinette was a tiny cat-like being. Power pulsed off of it making the hair on the back of Helen’s neck stand on end. Plagg, the cat of destruction. 

“So,” Helen started, “You’re the counter to Tikki’s power then? Almost felt like Zalgo in here.” 

The cat hissed, “Don’t compare me to that bastard. He’s an ass and deserves a solid cataclysm to the face.” 

Helen smirked, “Ah so this is why Slender said you were an interesting being. Either way, I’m Helen, and we need to talk.” 

“If you want to break my kit-” 

Helen cut him off harshly, voice like ice, “Don’t. While some of my coworkers are assholes, I would never intentionally break anyone, but Adrian is holding on by a thread and something needs to be done if you don’t want to become part of the next creep, or worse, down a user.” 

His whiskers drooped as he glanced towards the closed bathroom door, “... What do you have in mind?” 

Sabine and Tom didn’t check on Marinette until the next morning and were only slightly surprised to see a note signed with a smiley face, ladybug, and cat on her made bed. 

**_The kids need to see what happens if they snap._ **


	4. Chapter 4

“You’re both coming with me,” Helen spoke the second Adrian reappeared from the bathroom, wrapped in Marinette’s oversized pink polka-dotted bathrobe. The blond looked surprised and suspicious. 

“Don’t worry, kid,” Helen continued, “I’m not going to hurt you. I can’t in what little good conscience I have left let anyone become a creep if I can help it, let alone my daughter and her superhero partner.” 

“Creep?” Adrian raised his brow at this, edging away slightly. 

Helen just rolled his eyes and allowed his glamor to fall, leaving a teenage boy who could have been Marinette’s twin standing where the once lanky man had. He cracked a smile as the boy jumped. 

“It’s short for Creepypasta,” He explained, “You’ve probably found our stories before, stories of Jeff the Killer, of Laughing Jack, of Smile Dog, of Slenderman, and thought we were just that, stories. The reality of the situation is Kwamis and Miraculous aren’t the only magic in the world, there’s a much darker side to the unexplainable out there. I and, by extension, Marinette are part of this world. ” 

Adrian’s eyes were the size of dinner plates, but even so, a new emotion was flickering in his eye. Most of the time creeps see fear or anger in the eyes of those that discover them, but Adrian has been in such deep broken fear and hurt anger for too long. In his eyes, the father and daughter saw curiosity slowly trickle in. 

Marinette smiled softly, “It’s okay Kitty, you’re still safe. Dad’s not going to hurt you.” 

Helen snorted, “Even the stupidest creeps have a code. You’re the last person we’d want dead even if you didn’t have a tiny little god of destruction in your pocket. Especially since Marinette likes you so much.” 

“Damn straight,” Plagg huffed, tail lashing as if daring the creature to do anything.

“My dad is what’s known as a Proxy,” Marinette explained, “A worker of sorts for a more powerful entity. In his case, he’s a proxy of the Operator, or as you most likely know him, Slenderman. I was conceived after he was made so I fall under the creeps domain as well even though I’m not a creep and will never be a creep unless I commit a murder worthy of my own creepypasta.” 

“So all creepypastas are real, and you’re the daughter of,” Adrian’s eyes darted across Helen’s form landing on his pin and the mask attached to his belt, “The Bloody Painter?” 

“Ha, you ARE a fan,” Helen snorted. 

“And he wants us to come with him because why?”

Plagg winced, floating up to headbutt his user in the cheek, “Kid… he’s worried you’ll become like him. Your sanity is in such a fragile state… it’s worrisome even if you weren’t fighting Hawkmoth. You need to get away from your dad, from Paris and you certainly need to get away from that abusive rapist bitch that broke you before one of us, at best gets akumatized, or worst does something drastic that we can’t take back.”

Adrian cupped the small cat by his face, a single tear running down his cheek as he looked to see the deep understanding of the pair in front of him. 

“Okay,” He said in a soft voice that was barely a breath, “But if we really leave then Paris will be undefended, and won’t people put it together when we leave at the same time as the heroes stop showing up? Can we really leave Paris unde-”

“I have a plan,” Marinette cut in, “but it’s going to take a bit to get into place.”

Helen rolled his shoulders, shifting back into his adult form, “Adrian eat. Let's get some bags packed and put this plan into action.” 

* * *

The morning saw Ladybug and Chat Noir swinging through the city with smiles, laughing and greeting the citizens with cheer. When asked why they were out so early they let pain and uncertainty flicker across their faces for a split second, before the smiles were back and they gave some lame excuses about needing a break from their everyday life. 

Paris felt a twinge that something wasn’t right that the city couldn’t shake. 

When school started Ms. Bustier’s class was surprised and worried to see their principal in their classroom. Adrian was still missing as far as they were aware, they really hoped nothing happened to him.

“Students,” Damocles started once the bell had rung, “Before school today, The Dupain-Chengs came in and informed me that Marinette was being pulled for the rest of the year and moved to homeschooling.” 

“What!” Alya yelled, the room breaking into a frenzy. 

“SILENCE!” Mr. Damocles barked and patiently waited until the room froze, “Now before any rumors start, they wished for you all to know that Marinette’s birth father had been in a terrible accident and she was on the first plane they could find last night to the United States to be with him as they were not sure if he’d survive very long. She will remain in the US until he is better or until his affairs are put in order. I hope you all do your best to understand and be supportive of her if she reaches out.” 

The teacher and principal exit the room soon after with remarks about needing to get the proper paperwork in order for the transfer leaving a shocked classroom. 

“Mr. Dupain isn’t her dad?” Alya whispered in shock only for Nino to shrug. 

“Well, yeah, Kim and I were invited to the wedding and Marinette told us when she was changing her name. Her dad is some artist from the states, Sabine didn’t give out too many details but it wasn’t hard to put together Mari was a one night stand baby. Her dad was pretty cool though. I hope he’s okay.” 

Kim nodded when the class turned to look at him, “ Yeah we met him when he came for her tenth birthday, gave her some really awesome fabric she ended up making into a dress she wore to the school banquet. Apparently, his job is pretty sporadic so he’s not able to visit regularly, but you can tell he really loves Marinette and treated all of us pretty well.” 

Chloe snorted, “Speak for yourselves, He gave me the creeps with his stare when I tried to say something to Marinette, made some weird comment about how I’d make a lovely medium for art one day.” 

Nathanial gave her a quizzical look, “You mean muse?” 

“No? I’m pretty sure I’d remember the ridiculous statement the man-made to me. He definitely said medium.” 

“But,” Nathanial muttered, “That makes no sense. A medium is the materials used for an art piece, not the subject of the piece. How could he make you his medium?” 

“How am I supposed to know?” 

Nino’s phone buzzed and he paled looking down, “Uh dudes, Adrian just posted on his insta, like his model insta.” 

The pictures on the post were vaguely graphic, nail marks and bruises littering pale skin in sickly colors. Nothing below the belt but they could see how the bruises fell they extended further then he was showing. 

_**I’m sorry I ran, but I couldn’t handle the sexual abuse anymore. A fellow model, my father’s muse no less, decided I was hers and wouldn’t take no for an answer. She’s lied and lied so much even my friends from school are convinced we’re a couple but I just want to be able to live my life without the fear of her touching me and spinning tales of how no one will believe me if I spoke out, how she’ll tell the world I raped her if I did. I still feel so dirty after she slipped something into my drink. It didn’t even knock me out, simply made it so I couldn’t move. I’m done. I’m sorry but I’m done.**_

None of the class could stop the bile from rising in their throats as their eyes flash to Lila who was slowly turning pruce. 

* * *

The weekend arrived, with only two Akuma attacks since Marinette left for America, Ladybug and Chat Noir taking care of it swiftly and near silently, their normal banter sporadic at best the first time, almost melancholy the second. 

Paris had noticed and was nearing panic. What was wrong with their heroes?

Two siblings found out, as the clock clicked closer to Saturday. 

The Couffaine siblings were hanging out on their beds, idly playing music together, already in their PJs. Their mother was out for the night, invited to drinks with Jagged to reconnect after all these years. So when they heard thumps on the deck above they froze. 

The fear only reduced slightly as the familiar faces of the city’s heroes appeared from the top of the stairs, though the panic shifted to a different source. Luka shoots worried glances at his sister. How would she react to him being a hero?

“Ladybug, Chat Noir,” He greeted, “What’s wrong? An Akuma?” 

“Not right now,” Ladybug responded, face serious but ever so kind, “But we have a large favor to ask both of you.” 

“You know I’m always willing to help,” He answered without hesitation and saw his usually timid sister nod in agreement. 

“I’ll do everything I can.” 

Chat Noir gave a ghost of his usually cheeky grin, “Can you keep a secret?” 

Before either sibling got to ask what he meant the pair was engulfed in bright light. When it faded Marinette and Adrian stood in front of the pair.

“Luka Couffaine,” Marinette said, holding out the box with a broken smile, “This is the miraculous of the Snake.”

“Juleka Couffaine,” Adrian continued, holding out an identical box, “This is the miraculous of the Mouse.” 

“We’re entrusting you to use these miraculous to keep Paris safe in our steed,” They replied in unison to the frozen siblings, “Do you accept?” 

“What?” Juleka squeaked, “You two…” 

Luka took the box with a stony look, “What do you mean in your steed?” 

Adrian’s face fell, “Chat Noir and Ladybug are leaving Paris for a while. I’m sure you know why I need to leave, but Mari offered me an escape and needs a break as well.” 

Marinette’s steely look silenced any protests, “We’ve been failed too many times. It’s breaking us, if we don’t leave soon we're going to end up akumatized ourselves or worse. We’re entrusting you two with the truth, and with being the main protectors of Paris while we’re gone.”

“We’re handing over an official video tomorrow morning explaining our leave of Absence to Nadja to play during the news cycles, probably all of them,” Adrian said with a hollow laugh, “

“But what about the other miraculous?” Luka asked, “We’re not going to be Ladybug and Chat Noir, and even you need help sometimes. What do we do if we need help?” 

“The Fox is with a male user named Badulf and the monkey with King Monkey. My mama currently has the miraculous box, so if you need to get the Bee to Hachimitsu or the dragon to Kaida she’ll have them,” Marinette continued, “If you need another miraculous I trust you to make the choice of who to give it to with a view exceptions. We don’t need another Aspik incident.”

“In my defense,” Adrian counter, “I have a hard time saying no to anyone, let alone my best friend who was trusting me with a very important task.” 

“Okay,” Juleka let out a shaky sigh, “You need to start from the beginning.” 

And so they did. They told the pair about getting their miraculous, about the allies they had taken throughout the years, the ones they didn’t trust anymore, the ones that had hurt them too many times. They told them about how life outside the mask had grown harder and harder and trying not to be akumatized was growing near impossible. They listed the spells and charms they had created to allow the pair to contain the akumas since Ladybug would be gone. 

Luka and Juleka held their hands, anger, fury, and sympathy rolling off of them. By the end, Marinette worried they would deal with another akumaztion but Juleka elbowed him with a scowl and he took several deep breaths to calm down. 

“Okay,” He said finally, “We’ll take care of the city. You two get better okay,”

“Don’t worry,” Marinette said with a soft smile, “You’re going to stay with my dad. He’s going to make sure we don’t snap under all of the pressure.” 

“Take this,” She handed over a notecard with a pair of emails on it, “If something like Syren or Stormy Weather shows up again so I can use Miraculous Ladybug. We believe in you.” 

As quickly as they had arrived the heroes had left, leaving the siblings to get to know their kwamis and prepare for the news that would break in only a few short hours on how the safety of the city was now on their shoulders.

“Everything done?” Helen asked once the heroes landed in Bois de Boulogne. Once they nodded he tossed them their backpacks and turned to the tree he already carved the Operator symbol into, opening the portal to the Slender Forest. 

“Let’s make this quick,” Helen groaned, “Slender isn’t going to be happy I waited this long to get in touch with him.” 

“Do you think now is a good time to give Slender the new tie I made him?” 


End file.
